Programme Advisor (Nutrition) SSA7

The World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. The mission of WFP is to help the world achieve Zero Hunger in our lifetimes. Every day, WFP works worldwide to ensure that no child goes to bed hungry and that the poorest and most vulnerable, particularly women and children, can access the nutritious food they need.

JOB TITLE:

Programme Advisor (Nutrition)

TYPE OF CONTRACT:

Short-term Consultant Contract, when and as employed (SSA7)

6 months (5-10 days/ month)

UNIT/DIVISION:

Nutrition

DUTY STATION (City, Country):

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

BACKGROUND

Currently designing the next 5-year-plan, WFP contributes to the objectives of the UNDAF/UN Cooperation Framework and the work of the United Nations in the Kyrgyz Republic with its current Country Strategic Plan for 2018–2022, which focuses on five Strategic Outcomes:

1. Providing hot school meals for primary school-aged children (SO1);
2. Supporting vulnerable and food insecure smallholders to enhance their livelihoods (SO2);
3. Strengthening resilience to shocks and climate change for vulnerable communities (SO3);
4. Capacity-strengthening of government institutions for a comprehensive food security and nutrition management system (SO4);
5. Emergency support and early recovery (SO5).

WFP’s activities, including school meals and preventive, shock-responsive and promotive social protection measures in support of the vulnerable households, aim at ensuring that vulnerable populations meet their essential needs and at improving food security and nutrition in the country.

WFP in the Kyrgyz Republic co-leads the SUN Network with UNICEF, co-chairs the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food Security and Nutrition working group of the DPCC, and actively participates in other national and regional fora, including with nutrition expertise. The nutrition unit in the Country Office is a cross-cutting advisory support to all programme lines

PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT

To provide specialized nutrition policy and programme-related advice and internal coordination support to facilitate the effective delivery of WFP’s nutrition-sensitive programmes, plus coordinating policy partnerships in the area of healthy diets and nutrition.

Supervision received: The advisor will work closely with the Research, Analysis & Monitoring team as well as the partnerships unit and will be directly supervised by a policy officer. He/She will regularly report to Head of Programme and Deputy Country Director to ensure cross-cutting nutrition objectives are achieved.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive, nor exhaustive):

1. Perform specialized nutrition advice and coordination support as regards WFP’s work in nutrition, supporting nutrition-sensitive strategies and alignment with wider programme-related policies and guidelines, plus anchoring of WFP’s objectives in national plans and programmes.
2. Provide project management to specific and defined nutrition projects and activities, ensuring a coordinated approach with wider programmes/projects that complies with WFP standards and procedures.
3. Advise programme managers on project management approaches that achieve the set nutrition-sensitive objectives, including but not limited to advice on:
   1. data gathering and monitoring/assessment ensuring that rigorous quality standards are maintained.
   2. liaising with implementing partners (internal and external) to monitor ongoing projects ensuring effective collaboration, timeliness and efficiency, and highlight potential risks to project delivery.
   3. implementation and monitoring of social behaviour change communication strategies.
   4. food quality and safety standards and their integration into programme.
4. Track and analyse data to provide inputs into reporting activities and contribute to the preparation of accurate and timely reporting on nutrition activities that enables informed decision making and consistency of information presented to stakeholders.
5. Support the identification of potential partners and partnership negotiations to ensure a collaborative and holistic approach to meeting nutrition needs; representing CO in various meetings with the main stakeholders related to food security and nutrition
6. Support the capacity building of WFP staff, partners and national government to prepare for and respond to nutrition needs for example the production and review of training materials.
7. Guide more junior staff, acting as a point of referral and supporting them with more complex analysis and queries.
8. Act in an assigned emergency response capacity as required to meet emergency food assistance needs.
9. Other as required.

DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE:

• five years experience and exposure to implementation of national/international development programmes.

• fiver years experience working in public health/food security/ nutrition related activities.

• Experience identifying and defining nutrition issues/problems within a country.

Functional Capabilities (Knowledge & Skills):

• Knowledge of Nutrients Utilizes knowledge of vitamins and nutrients to understand the causes of malnutrition, the relationships between the different types of malnutrition, and is able to articulate conceptual models.

• Situation Analysis and Evidence Assessment Able to appropriately interpret the nutrition situation, analyze primary causes of malnutrition, define limitations to the analysis (e.g. seasonality) and prepare an overview of the food security and nutrition situation in country.

• Knowledge of Public Health or Food Systems Has foundational knowledge of the core public health sciences (i.e., biostatistics, epidemiology, social science, environmental health, and prevention of chronic and infectious disease and injury) in order to assess a country’s/region’s health situation or ability to analyze how food systems influence the diets of vulnerable groups and identify how and where food systems may contribute to specific nutrient gaps.

• Knowledge of Nutrition Development Work Leverages nutrition knowledge to provide technical advice to governments to design and implement country nutrition programmes that follow international and WFP agency standards and guidance.

Education: University degree, preferably at the advanced level in Nutrition, Health, Public Health, Social Sciences, Education, Policy and Management, Family Health, Food Security, Food Technology or other relevant fields.

Language: Fluency (level C) in both oral and written communication in the duty station’s languages (Russian and Kyrgyz), knowledge of English considered an asset.

TALENTED WOMEN ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY

We look for applicants with the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian values. We commit to promote diversity, gender parity and equality between men and women.

WFP is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all qualified candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organisation.

WFP strives to build a work environment that is safe and respectful, and free of sexual harassment and abuse of authority. We believe in open communication, and every individual at WFP is treated with respect regardless of gender, age, ethnicity, religious and political beliefs, etc.

Closing date: 19 June 2022

This position is open ONLY to Kyrgyz citizens or those authorized to live and work in the Kyrgyz Republic according to national regulations. Applicants who do not meet this criterion will not be considered for this position.

WFP does not charge any fees at any stage of its recruitment process.

Only candidates who are short-listed will be contacted.